Tuesday, May 4, 2010

The two best striker duos in MLS, Donovan and Buddle for LA and Casey and Cummings for Colorado, face off at the Dick tomorrow night. Its a big game for both teams as LA is currently 6 points clear at the top of the West, with Colorado tied for second. A win by LA will make it difficult for them to be caught any time soon, while a win by Colorado puts the Rapids right back into it. Game time is at 7:30pm, and the best tailgate in MLS starts in the East VIP lot at 5:30pm.

Injury Report:

OUT: MID Ciaran O'Brien (L hip sprain), FWD Ross Schunk (R ACL tear)

DOUBTFUL: MID Jamie Smith (R hamstring strain)

LA has 4 players questionable so they're hurting a bit. They also have another game in Seattle on Saturday, while the Rapids are off for a week and a half after this game. I don't expect many changes from Gary Smith:

Pickens

Kimura - Wynne - Moor - Earls

Pablo - Larentowicz

Cummings - Ballouchy - Clark

Casey

The only change I expect is the return of Colin Clark in place of Wells Thompson. Thompson has had a good run, but its time for Clark to get back into the starting XI.

Key To Look For: Edson Buddle. Buddle is on fire, with 9 goals in the first 6 games. The rest of the Galaxy have 1 goal between them. Nobody has been able to stop Buddle yet, and its going to take good team defense for the Rapids to shut him down tomorrow night.

Prediction:1-1 draw, goal by Conor Casey. I can actually see the Rapids losing this one, with as hot as the Galaxy are. Still I think being at home again will be enough to get the Rapids a point. Buddle will get one goal, but Casey will match his competitor for a World Cup roster spot.